Subtitles section Play video Print subtitles Lindau is a Bavarian major town and an island on the eastern side of Lake Constance, the freshwater lake called Bodensee in German. It is the capital of the Landkreis or rural district of Lindau, very closely situated near Austria and Switzerland. Lindau is part of Bavarian Swabia. The Coat of Arms of Lindau town is a Lime tree. The historic town of Lindau is located on an 0.68-square-kilometre island, which is connected with the mainland by a road-traffic bridge and a railway dam leading to Lindau station. History The name Lindau was first mentioned by a monk from St. Gallen in a document of 882, stating that Adalbert, count of Raetia, had founded a nunnery on the island. However remains of an early Roman settlement dating back to the 1st century have been found in the district of Aeschach. In 1180 the St. Stephan's church was founded. In 1224 the Franciscans founded a monastery on the island. In 1274/75 Lindau became an Imperial Free City under King Rudolph I. The terminology 'city' here means German Große Kreisstadt, which is an exception due to Lindau's rather small population of c. 24454 only. In 1430, about 15 of Lindau's Jews were burned at the stake after being accused of murdering a Christian child. In 1528, Lindau accepted the Protestant Reformation. Lindau first followed the Tetrapolitan Confession, and then the Augsburg Confession. After the Thirty Years' War, in 1655 the first Lindauer Kinderfest was held in memory of the war time. After the dissolution of the Holy Roman Empire, Lindau lost its status as an Imperial Free City in 1802. The city went to Karl August von Bretzenheim who gave Lindau and monastery to the Kingdom of Austria in 1804. In 1805 Austria returned Lindau to Bavaria. In 1853 a dam was built to connect the railway from Munich to the island. In 1856 a new harbour was built, with its characteristic landmark, the lion sculpture, together with Bavaria's only lighthouse. In 1922 the independent districts of Aeschach, Hoyren and Reutin merged with the district. After World War II Lindau fell under French administration and went firstly to Württemberg-Hohenzollern and then to the State of Baden-Württemberg. In 1955, Lindau returned to Bavaria. Lindau is located near the meeting point of the Austrian, German and Swiss borders. It nestles on the lake in front of Austria's Pfänder mountain. Lindau is popular with sightseers and holidaymakers for its medieval town centre and pleasant location on Lake Constance. Since 1951, the Nobel Laureate Meetings at Lindau attracts many Nobel prize winners to Lindau every year. A congress of medical physics is also held yearly. Tourist attractions Lindau is a main-sightseeing spot in the very South of Germany. Visitors from all over the world visit mostly in Summer. Lindau is famous for its rich, old town houses and variety of different buildings. The gardens of Lindau are wonderful in spring or summer blossom. Attractions range from old buildings to modern outdoor activities like Biking, Sailing, Hiking, Bathing, Camping, etc. A very up to date and official site is Lindau Tourismus, which takes care of visitors and acts as a starting platform. Habour entrance with lighthouse and Bavarian Lion sculpture Church of St. Stephan, c. 1180 with remodelling in 1782 Church of St. Peter, became war memorial church in 1928 Minster 'Unserer Lieben Frau' former church of the monastery 'Maria Himmelfahrt', with St. Marien Maximilianstraße Historic Town Hall Casino Spielbank Lindau Gardens and Parks of Lindau, e.g. Lindenhofpark Museum 'Haus zum Cavazzen' Theatre Lindau Boat trips by Bodenseeschifffahrt Lindau's Old Book Archive with books from the 15th to 18th Century inside the historic town hall Scenic spot with stunning views: Hoyerberg near Hoyerberg Schlössle Etc. Economy In former times an important trading route from Nuremberg to Italy passed through Lindau; the lake fishery has also played a big role in the economy of the city. In the 19th century Lindau was an important location for textile industries. Nowadays Lindau has a well established industrial and touristic economy, including Restaurants, Hotels and B&B's. For families it is also popular to stay at a Ferienwohnung, which you find everywhere in the area. Lindau has a very low unemployment rate, likely due to the economy mix and good trade near the Rhine-Valley. Today, there are a lot of small amongst some industrial companies. Larger corporations Lindauer DORNIER GmbH Liebherr Electronics Cooper-Standard Automotive Cofely Refrigeration Lindauer Fruchtgarten Continental AG, BU ADAS Faurecia Automotive Crane Co. ChemPharm Energyy Tanner AG; Tanner is also a major office complex which hosts several other companies Duwe 3D Tecnotron Electronics in Weißensberg, very close to Lindau Touristic economy Hotels, ranging from smaller B&B's and Vacation rentals to established, state-of-the-art Hotels, e.g. at the harbour front of Lindau Restaurants & Cafés, including many different kinds of cuisines, Italian, Greek, German, modern Gastro cuisine, Thai, Chinese, etc. and some take aways Swimming pools and baths. Some places are public and free of charge, some places have entrance fee and contain a pool and all amenities Bike stations, shops for bike rental Etc. Other local economy Numerous farmers around town, producing apples, pears, strawberries, etc. and higher grade products e.g. Schnapps or Vine or fruit juices. Local hairdressers, Gyms, bakeries, butchers, ice cream and coffee shops Variety of car dealers, petrol stations, etc. Care homes, care takers, Hospital, etc. Districts Districts Lindau is split into several districts. A search for 'Lindau Stadt' will reveal the town's bordering to the neighbour parts of Lindau. Central: Island, Aeschach East: Reutin, Zech West: Bad Schachen, Unterreitnau North: Oberreitnau, Hochbuch, Hoyern, Schönau Transportation Railway Lindau has a main station the Lindauer Hbf, with trains usually from/to Friedrichshafen, Munich, Ulm and Augsburg direction or Bregenz with OBB, Austria and further like Zurich by SBB. Bus - - Stadtbus Lindau Lindau's bus system is called Stadtbus Lindau, which departs conveniently from all station every 30 Minutes and runs until 22.30 daily, with special exceptions at events. The bus system is a very helpful way of getting around town for people of all ages, provided by the Lindauer Stadtwerke, which is the main local utility provider. Beside that the RBA and the Zweiländer-line of Austrias "Landbus Unterland" offer their services. Recently long-distance coaches have started running lines to further away German cities an being an alternative to the Railway by Deutsche Bahn. Road Lindau is connected to the Autobahn A96. Main roads include B31 and B12. The A96 will merge into the Austrian Autobahn A14 starting right after the boarding with the c. 7 km long Pfändertunnel. The tunnel has been under reconstruction and expansion into a 2-pipe system for a total of 4 lanes in the last years to compensate for traffic going North and South. Airports Lindau does not have its own airport, however is in very close location to Airport Friedrichshafen and Airport Memmingen, which usually serve holiday flyers and European destinations. For international flights, it is suitable to refer to either Airport Munich, Airport Stuttgart or Airport Zurich, all in reasonable distance. Utility Lindau's local utility provider is called Stadtwerke Lindau. The business includes electricity, water, telecommunications, public baths, and other products. The provider tries to improve in all branches, particular also to integrate and deploy green-energy amongst homes, but also by buying renewables only. Telecommunication Lindau's telecommunication network is ever growing in the global race for faster internet access. The local utility provider Stadtwerke TK-Lindau started deploying high-grade glass-fibre internet to major businesses, including corporations or Hotels, but also to new housing development areas. Other networks include cable television e.g. by Kabel Deutschland, which is available to some streets and xDSL, e.g. by Telekom or any other provider due to the liberalised market. Some systems have seen upgrades of the ADSL standard in the last years to cope with the high demand of novel communication media. Special projects are also set up to further improve the situation, e.g. plans to deploy a major WiFi hotspot network across the Island of Lindau. Property, redevelopment and other major projects across town It is worth to mention that Lindau is currently planning several major redevelopment projects across. The vast amount of projects can be followed through local news sources or e.g. spotting construction site signs. The following is a list of objects that are in focus of redevelopment. Some of the items, e.g. the new train station is in planning since decades. All dates, planning, etc. should be frequently looked up in news source due to high amount of changes that projects face with costs, construction issues an stakeholders. New train station - Lindau is planning a new train station since decades. Currently the agreement between the major stakeholders is to build a new station near the shopping mall Lindaupark and refurbish the station on the island. Both station will be active Train electrification project for tracks to Munich - This major project is sponsored by several big organs like State of Bavaria, Switzerland and Deutsche Bahn Lindau Inselhalle - Lindau's main hall, particular for conferences is due to massive rebuild very soon Multi-storey car park - with the changes of Lindau Inselhalle comes a new car park, on the island Property developments near the train station on the island are planned, especially once land is accessible after rail tracks have been removed New Fire station was completed in September 2014 near Auenstraße - Major headquarter for all former stations across town, including the Technisches Hilfswerk unit of Lindau all united in one complex Property developments connected to area which belongs to Deutsche Bahn near Reutin, once the new train station is completed Property developments in district Aeschach - Some major buildings, including luxury apartments and central located spaces for e.g. offices Railway underpass near entrance of the island - Lindau is planning two railway underpasses for cars to ease the situation with the many tourists visiting by car and blockage by frequent crossing closures Several company extensions or relocations are planned - As of September 2014 Continental AG is extending into a third office complex Lindau Utility is deploying optical broadband across the city - Many pedestrian pathways are opened and fitted with fibre to home Lindau Strandbad, the major public bath is in discussion of being refurbished, updated, etc. but there is many open questions regarding investments REWE Supermarket in Bodolz major redevelopment - New interior, new shops; the building also includes a pharmacy, gym, etc. it will be closed Dec 2014 until April 2015 Et cetera Local news sources Lindau has a well established newspaper called Lindauer Zeitung, which is part of the Schwäbische Zeitung. It is released daily. Another newspaper is the Bürgerzeitung Lindau. It is released biweekly and contains e.g. announcements of the town by the Mayor, but also very interesting small stories around local businesses, developments, events, reviews and many more. The paper is free, but ad-sponsored and can usually be found in shops or companies premises. Both newspapers are print and online available. Schools and Kindergartens Lindau has two main high schools: Bodensee-Gymnasium and Valentin-Heider-Gymnasium. With one middle school for girls and one middle school for boys Among several primary schools across the town. Lindau recently completed construction of a new Kindergarten home, which also included a Kita. There is high demand for childcare and places and the town has obligations by the State of Bavaria to prepare for every child. Hospitals, registration offices, etc. Asklepios Krankenhaus Lindau Bürgerbüro Lindau, the local office for all legal things, e.g. passports, registration, etc. KFZ-Zulassungsstelle, registration office for cars Finanzamt, location in Lindau Shopping Lindau's main shopping is mostly remote, off the Island, when it comes to supermarkets like Aldi, Lidl, REWE, etc. However, the Island holds many different shops with nice products,